Botulinum Toxin Injections for the Treatment of Neurological and Movement Disorders

Botulinum toxin (BoNT) is a protein and neurotoxin which is extremely effective in treating certain neurological and movement disorders. BoNT injections are used to treat disabling pain, varieties of dystonia, abnormal movement disorders and autonomic nervous system.

Symptoms of neurological conditions

Myofascial (tissues covering and connecting muscles), neck or back pain

Movement disorders

Blepharospasm (eyelid twitches)

Hemifacial spasm (twitches on one half of the face)

Oromandibular dystonia (contractions of the mouth, jaw and tongue muscles)

Cervical dystonia (contractions of the neck muscles)

Truncal dystonia (contractions of the torso muscles)

Hand or foot dystonia

Refractory tremor (persistent and uncontrollable shaking)

Palatal tremor (shaking of the rear roof of the mouth)

Tics, Myoclonus (brief, involuntary twitching of the muscles)

Spasticity (stiff or rigid muscles)

Bruxism (teeth grinding)

Hyperhidrosis (excessive sweating, especially of the armpits, palms and soles)

Hypersalivation or Sialorrhea (excessive production of saliva)

How BoNT works

BoNT works by blocking unwanted transmissions from being sent along the nervous system by preventing an organic compound called acetylcholine from being released. This reduces the volume of transmissions passing the point where the nervous system connects with the muscle system connect and reaching the body’s pain receptors and involuntary nervous system.

Risk Factors

Pregnancy: Studies on animals show adverse effects on the fetus but no controlled tests have been conducted on humans.

Lactation: Safety unknown due to insufficient data

Drug interaction: Can cause negative reactions if taken at the same time as some antibiotics ( aminoglycosides), malaria medication (Chloroquine), and neuromuscular blocking agents

Neuromuscular disorders: Can cause a muscle weakening condition known as myasthenia gravis

The toxin may spread beyond the injected area, causing difficulty with swallowing or breathing. The risks increase when BoNT is injected into children, used in high doses or injected into the wrong muscles.